Other Death of the springer

[txaggie929]

Something else that may be a contributing factor to the decline in springers is the general gun public and marketing tactics from companies like Gamo. They think that since it's not a "real gun", it shouldn't cost more than $150. Then they go into Bass Pro or Cabelas and see these $150 springers advertising 1200 fps using crap pellets. They get the gun and can't hit the broadside of a barn with it as a result and then decide that spring guns suck.

If people were properly educated, I think it would be a different story. Like most Americans, they want instant gratification of something being exceptionally good for cheap as they can get. But they're going to learn with the cheapo PCP's and accessories that it's not all unicorn farts and rainbows down the road when things fail.

 

[BABz58]

Something else that may be a contributing factor to the decline in springers is the general gun public and marketing tactics from companies like Gamo. They think that since it's not a "real gun", it shouldn't cost more than $150. Then they go into Bass Pro or Cabelas and see these $150 springers advertising 1200 fps using crap pellets. They get the gun and can't hit the broadside of a barn with it as a result and then decide that spring guns suck.

If people were properly educated, I think it would be a different story. Like most Americans, they want instant gratification of something being exceptionally good for cheap as they can get. But they're going to learn with the cheapo PCP's and accessories that it's not all unicorn farts and rainbows down the road when things fail.

Well put

 

[crosman2016]

To me, a lot of it comes down to what people are buying. If the consumer were to not buy something cheaper, and only buy what is "high end", then after a while manufacturers would have to follow suit.

I can't say that I own any expensive Springers, but the ones I have do fine for me.

 

[Tumblinginflight]

Perhaps a piece of the equation stems from romanticizing how different springers are from one another. Before the proliferation of PCPs, the only way to really differentiate classes and brands of springers was by offering increasing levels of quality.

I’ve shot high power, low power, and the in-betweens. Nice stocks, firewood, and synthetic. Raw twang, finely tuned, and rammed. I have enjoyed them all for different reasons, but if we’re being honest, springers are limited in power and practicality, and where their function ends, PCPs are just getting started.

Back in the 90s and 2k era, there were so many new releases utilizing virtually the same trigger, power plant, stock configuration, sights- and as a result- experience. And people Ate. It. Up. Forums buzzed with comparison and contrast threads. How many pages were filled just with RWS vs Gamo threads when the speed wars were in full swing? Because that was what was available at the time.

Fast forward, I do think springers still have and deserve their place in current times, but there is nothing in the market to drive companies to compete at a higher level. In 20-30 years, others will probably having the same conversation about PCPs as they’re enjoying rail guns in the back yard.. if yards are still around that is!

 

[DualMagMike]

I must agree, springers are dead. Notice that one PCP on the left, please ignore the rest

 

[bustachip]

I must agree, springers are dead. Notice that one PCP on the left, please ignore the rest

View attachment 518275

So this is what a springer cemetery looks like.
Not what I imagined from a bunch of dead piston guns..lol.

 

[.20calguy]

This was where I wound up going to get a PCP that was decent!.

It by itself cost the about the same as these three springers.

 

[BABz58]

This was where I wound up going to get a PCP that was decent!.
View attachment 518287
It by itself cost the about the same as these three springers.
View attachment 518290

All of them are beautiful

 

[.20calguy]

All of them are beautiful

Thanks, they're all a great experience when you're behind them.

 

[BABz58]

Thanks, they're all a great experience when you're behind them.

Wish you lived closer. I see more than a couple I’d love to sit behind.

 

[.20calguy]

Wish you lived closer. I see more than a couple I’d love to sit behind.

Where are you?
I will stick it in the back of my mind in case I'm ever in the area.
I'm about 60 miles north of New Orleans.

 

[BABz58]

Where are you?
I will stick it in the back of my mind in case I'm ever in the area.
I'm about 60 miles north of New Orleans.

Central Iowa

I have a friend in Morse, LA

 

[Airgun Al]

I have an airgun channel on YouTube devoted to springers, or should I say, piston powered airguns. I believe that my channel analytics can help to explain the drop in production of fine spring powered guns. When looking at the age groups who subscribe to my channel it looks like this:

18 - 24 years old 4.5%
25 - 34 years old 10.2%
35 - 44 years old 16.0%
45 - 54 years old 16.9%
55 - 64 years old 26.3%
65 - and older 26.1%

So, as you can see, we ole' timers are what's keepin' the springers alive. When we're gone, I'm afraid that the piston guns will all but die with us.

Pellets And Pistons Airgun Channel

Pellets and Pistons Airgun Channel is an unbiased reviewer of airguns and related products. The main focus will be on spring piston powered airguns however we'll feature other powerplants from time to time. I am not sponsored by anyone and because of this I have the freedom to be fair and...

www.youtube.com

Nice channel!
Off topic, but I REALLY enjoyed your Quicksilver ultralight aircraft footage.
Years ago I purchased, rebuilt, and flew a Teratorn ultralight, which was a copy, of the very early Quicksilvers....
1 person, 32' wingspan, 15HP Yamaha 2 stroke engine, controlled by shifting my weight back and forth, and left to right.
It was as simple as they get!
I loved that aircraft!
So much fun!
Like a motorcycle with wings!
Years latter, I moved up to a home built aircraft called a "Legal Eagle" with a 2 cylinder Volkswagen engine cut in half.
More recently, I picked up and rebuilt a 37 hp. Rotax engine, and, god willing, I may get back up in the air again, sometime soon, who knows?

 

[.20calguy]

Central Iowa

I have a friend in Morse, LA

You've got to love a little southern La town like Morse with a street named Coon Richard's street,.
Pronounced koown Reesh-shards.
I would definitely have to visit Elliott's Meathouse, for some sausage.
That's a ride though, just shy of three hours west.

 

[Duckfish]

What you're seeing is a meta-feature of our modern market.

A high-quality springer could easily last 100+ years with minimal amounts of service or replacement parts. For companies to avoid being driven into the dirt they often need to make as much revenue as possible. So you make rifles that need to be serviced, need spare parts, allow users to purchase add-ons and reconfigure the rifle, etc.

It's the same thing that has happened to kitchen appliances. Can you find one that'll last 10 years without being serviced, anymore? In the 40's and 50's they were made to last. But the entire appliance market has realized that isn't in their interests.

In the most extreme you see it in the automobile market. When you "buy" a modern electric vehicle now you are effectively just buying an "exclusive long-term rental agreement". The car company can remotely change your car's operating system, affecting everything from performance to mileage, without your consent.

The market gives incentives for companies to migrate to a "rent seeking" model. Pay companies a constant stream of money on a regular contract, like Disney+.

The power of the dark side is strong! But there are many who stay in the light!

 

[bustachip]

The power of the dark side is strong! But there are many who stay in the light!

I walk in the light.

 

[Pale_Rider]

Don McLean wrote a song about this topic.

“The day the springer died”

…I can’t remember if I cried
When I tried to cock the spring inside
But something touched me deep inside
The day the springer died…​

 

[steve123]

Did any Co ever build an opposing piston gas ram system?

 

[Sawney Bean]

Did any Co ever build an opposing piston gas ram system?

I think Whiscombe is the only company that ever built an opposing piston rifle of any variety.

 

[steve123]

I'd think that since I most commonly had nice springers as a boy I'd prefer them, but I also had multi pumps of lower quality back then. I liked the convenience of one cock of a springer in a higher quality gun but liked the firing feel of the multi's.

I grew up and bought nice multi's and nice springers only to find out I still liked what I did as a boy. I had a Crow Magnum once with gas ram but it was hard to cock and kind of obnoxious to shoot but lacking the springy sproing part.
Also had a Sportsman and a Nova.

I got to shoot a Whiscombe once as well as a few recoilless guns with better recoil impulse feel.

But SSP and PCP are much more up my ally. Convenience one cock of my FWB 601 with irons and a hundred shots using my Steyr LGB1 with a scope, both at 5.5 fpe. Up in power it goes from there of my pcp's.

I only have one springer left, a youth sized AR-15 looking thing that I think is CZ based. It's funny because if someone comes around that isn't familiar with airguns I'll start them on that CZ first, then the 601, then the Steyr, and they've never told me they wanted to go back to the springer.

FWB 300s's are pretty neat but I'd rather shoot SSP.